By P. Samuels
As a rule, I love to try new recipes. I have tried baking countless different brownies, Bundt cakes, and marble cakes. One cake that I stopped trying to improve on, though, is my mother’s, a’h, honey cake. It’s easy, has a great texture, and it’s delicious. I once tried to “improve” it by separating the eggs and beating the whites first. Now my trusty recipe book has a warning scribbled across the page: “Do not separate the eggs.” My family likes the flavor of the original, but if you like the taste of cinnamon, nutmeg, or powdered cloves, you can add these spices. (Use very little of the cloves—not more than half a teaspoon. It’s a strong spice.) You can also double the extracts for a stronger flavor.
Have a sweet new year!
Ingredients:
2 cups sugar
1 cup oil
1 cup honey (use the oily measuring cup, and the honey will slide right out)
9 whole eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
½ tsp. lemon extract
½ tsp. almond extract
1 tsp. instant coffee
4½ cups all-purpose flour
1 flat tsp. baking soda
2 heaping tsp. baking powder
Directions:
Beat sugar and oil on high speed. Add honey and beat again. Add extracts. With mixer running, add eggs one at a time.
Dissolve the coffee in an ounce of boiling water. Then add 1 cup water.
Mix baking powder and baking soda into flour. With mixer on slow speed, add flour to batter, alternating with coffee. Increase mixer speed just until flour is fully mixed into batter. Pour batter into 10”×15” pan and bake at 350°F for one hour and ten minutes. v